sadbrewer

Do you know York had its own Concertina Band as early as 1883? ...run by George Brown, Church Lane, Tannery Row. The Secretary was David Brown, address, 18 and a half, Burton Lane.

Thanks for that info Chris, I reckon I've got it now...it's not Mexborough the place, I think it's the Earl of Mexborough's fund....the family seat was at Methley in the Leeds area..as is Chapel Allerton. There were a number of pubs in the Leeds area called The Mexborough Arms. I don't profess to know the details of the landed gentry, but the landed gentry of Mexborough ( the town) were the Montagu-Yarborough family...in fact our own Mexborough Concertina Band Club was built on their land. Had the activities been related to the area it would almost certainly have been for the benefit of the wounded in Mexborough's Montagu Hospital...I'm in our heritage society and never heard of such a fund, and there are no mentions in the newspaper archive that I can find. Hope that solves it!!

He might just have been a skilled amateur repairer....or perhaps it was his own instrument...I signed and dated mine inside, perhaps he did the same. It would be interesting to see what his occupation was in the 1921 census though.

Hi Chris, I'm from Mexborough myself, I just wondered if you could expand on the Mexborough connection if poss...I've had a look through the census' and there are no Astleys living here in the late 19th or 20th centuries...so it seems a little odd, unless perhaps Cecil & Jenny Ashley, who were in the area at various times in the theatres.

Benjamin Joseph Peat was born in 1892 in Old Ford Road, Bow. In the 1911 census he was a labourer in a chemical works and living at 3 Oban Road. He was still at that address in 1912, but by 1918 was at No 104 until 1922 when he moved. He died in 1926.

His Service Record shows him as being a Plumbers Mate at the time of attesting for the East Surreys in 1908. Apparently he deserted in 1911, and again in October 1914.

From 1878

I'm not sure he's Irish, but this chap gets a mention.

You've fallen quite lucky with this chap. He was born in 1832 and died in 1916. He was a Seed crusher and oil merchant, it seems like a family business, his father William Flintan was a wealthy man...in 1870 Robert inherited his father's shares in The Great Western Railway. By 1891 he is describing himself as retired engineer & machine maker, my guess is the stamp is the company letterhead stamp, pity the bottom part can't be read. Photo from Ancestry. Article courtesy of The British Newspaper Archive. I think a nephew (possibly) William Houghton Flintan drowned in a boating accident at Margate in 1874.

He was a bankrupt at one stage....his Grandson ...also Rock, may well have emigrated to the US around the time of WW1

Second Part

From 1st April 1927

Just to follow this up Stephen, an article written a few years later said the initial patent lapsed in 1916. I'll post the article asap. Andy

From Dec 1913. From 1927. 1928

An expalnation from 1921 Further from 1927

Hi All...it seems as though the idea lasted for a few years at least, this Ad was from 1927.

https://www.concertina.net/forums/index.php?/topic/13367-whats-this/&tab=comments#comment-216354

10 years and one day to the last post, this article solves the issue...hope this is helpful, Andy